Often I am asked about which book had the most impact on me when I was a child. A couple of years ago I finally decided to write about that.

The book was a Webster’s Dictionary that I rescued from an incinerator and lugged home to a house that did not have many books. Part of the “A” section was missing. Still, it was a wonder to me! I continue to be enamored of dictionaries of all kinds.

To read my love song to dictionaries click below. This article was originally published in the Language Arts magazine, vol. 88, No. 2, November 2010. “Copyright 2007 by the National Council of Teachers of English. Used with permission."

Welcome . . .

Shutta Crum writes books for children and poetry for adults. She is also a storyteller, a lecturer and a librarian. In addition to her current eleven books she has three forthcoming books. Several of her articles about teaching and writing have appeared in professional journals. In 2005, she was honored by being one of eight authors invited to the White House for the Easter Egg Roll. In 2010 she was invited to tour Department of Defense American military base schools across Japan.